Deeplinks Blog posts about International

Today, Russian-language Wikipedia, Livejournal, and other prominent RuNet websites have gone dark to protest Bill № 89417-6, which is currently being considered in the Duma. The bill is comprised of amendments that create an Internet blacklist which opponents say poses a serious threat to freedom of expression in Russia. The blackout follows in the footsteps of other similar high-profile protests against Internet censorship bills, including SOPA/PIPA in the United States, and DDL Intercettazioni in Italy.

For weeks, thousands of Sudanese have taken to the streets, protesting austerity policies enacted by President Omar al-Bashir and his regime, which has been in power since 1989. Journalists covering the story have faced challenges, including detention and—for foreign correspondents—deportation. In June, Sudanese security services arrested Bloomberg reporter Salma El Wardany along with Prominent Sudanese blogger Maha El Sanousi, who was briefly detained. El Wardany found herself deported back to Egypt. Sudanese authorities also arrested Agence France-Presse reporter Simon Martelli, holding him for more than 12 hours without charges.

Today, two representatives of Public Citizen delivered the Stop the Trap petition—which has received over 90,000 signatures—to United States Trade Representative (USTR) officer Barbara Weisel. The petition is aimed at key government leaders and trade representatives of countries involved in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations, and it calls on them to drop all provisions in the agreement that would place heavy restrictions on the Internet and digital freedoms. We have endorsed this petition along with OpenMedia.Ca, Public Citizen, Public Knowledge, ONG Derechos Digitales, Free Press, Internet NZ, and others.

This weekend, EFF learned that Bassel Khartabil, a longtime member of the open source software community and Creative Commons volunteer, has been detained in Syria since March 12, 2012, as part of a wave of arrests made in the Mazzeh district of Damascus. For months, Bassel’s family has had no knowledge of his whereabouts or the reason for his arrest. Only recently have they heard from previous detainees at Kafar Sousa that he is being held at this location. This news is especially alarming in light of a recent Human Rights Watch report documenting the use of torture in 27 detention facilities run by Syrian intelligence agencies.

The below is a joint statement from EFF, Knowledge Ecology International, Public Knowledge, Public Citizen, and others. See below for the full list of signatories.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced a new copyright proposal today for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations. One part of the proposal is a "3-step test" that may restrict copyright exceptions like fair use.

The USTR says that its proposal - the text of which is still secret - will include provisions that may mimic Article 13 of the WTO TRIPS accord, which says:

Members shall confine limitations or exceptions to exclusive rights to certain special cases which do not conflict with a normal exploitation of the work and do not unreasonably prejudice the legitimate interests of the right holder.